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Post by The Sovereign on Jul 16, 2006 21:18:25 GMT
Before posting here please note that you must first have been accepted into the army (see "Recruitment Office" thread) to gain levels from your posts.
There are four ranks in the army training course, which you must obtain in order.
Trainee: 1 post of 500 words Page: 1 post of 750 words Advanced: 2 posts of 750 words Elite: 2 posts of 1000 words [one post with your Commander, the other individually]
After you have made your post you must wait until it has been accepted by a member of staff (or the Commander of the division) before you can post for the next level or add your rank to your name/ signature. Please note that if you are required to make 2 posts, the first must be accepted before you can post the second.
(Please see 'Army Rules' for more information, or PM The Sovereign with any queries you may have)
When writing a training post you must write about a training session with the Commander of your section. The Commander will be the persons who decides whether to accept your post. For the time being the Commanders for each section are as follows: Cavalry: Earl Christoph Archers: Earl Christoph Spies: The Sovereign Swordsmen: The Sovereign Mages: Lady Alianna Dragon Riders: Lady Alianna
The posts are to be colour coded: Cavalry: post in red Archers: post in green Spies: post in blue Swordsmen: post in brown Mages: post in beige Dragon Riders:post in purple
Any non-army training posts are not to be colour coded.
The posts must include a clear heading including which rank the post is for, in which section, and which Commander you are training with.
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Post by Drakan Thrice on Jul 22, 2006 19:28:35 GMT
Post for Trainee in Swordsmen training with The Sovereign
Drakan arrived at the training grounds with his sword safely in its sheath. He gazed across the huge field in awe. Never in his life had Draken seen so many different forms of physical training facilities.There was one thing Drakan had never seen before and he had n idea what it was. "Hello young one" a deep voice bellowed behind Drakan tearinghim from his curiosities. Turning round, Drakan discovered it was The Sovereign-his commander. "hello sir" he said bowing his head slightly. " i was not sure whether we would be using weapons today, but i brought my sword along in case" Smiling, the sovereign replied " Lets see how we get on first shall we?" Drakan nodded, unbuckled his sheath and lay it down on the ground by the entrance. "Sir, what is that over there?" "Well son" spoke the sovereign "That is the dragon training area. Now lets see how you can do on the assault course.
Drakan nodded once more and rolled up his sleeves. He was determined to prove his worth and make it into the army.
He completed the course as quickly as he could. Up the net, through the muddy trench, across the rope swing... By the time he returned to the sovereign, Drakan was muddy and tired. He collapsed onto the ground and laughed. "that was amazing!" he cried
"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself" laughed the sovereign. "same time tomorrow?" Dakan nodded and watched as the mighty Valros left the training grounds. Wow
Edit by The Sovereign: This post has been ACCEPTED
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Post by The Sovereign on Jul 22, 2006 21:07:06 GMT
Good first post Drakan, and nice work on managing to get exactly 250 words! You can now add "Trainee Swordsmen" to your signature, and begin your next level of training when you are ready.
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Post by Drakan Thrice on Jul 25, 2006 23:07:45 GMT
Post for paige in Swordsmen training with the sovereign
Drakan jumped off of his horse, Arkis happily, excited about his second training session with The Sovereign. He tied Arkis up to the fence and rolled up his sleeves. He was definitely ready to become a soldier. He felt like he had been born to do this. His first training session had given him a buzz that he had never before felt. Remembering back to his past, he remembered his father, the one person who treated him normally. He could se him even now in the garden, practicing sparring with Drakan and his brother. But now was not a time to dwell on the past.
Looking beyond the gate, Drakan could see that Valros was on his way. Expecting to be doing more on the assault course, Drakan unsheathed his sword and laid it by Arkis. “Afternoon sir” he said as politely as he could, trying not to show his enthusiasm for today’s session. “Good day young one” Valros replied with his usual air of dignity and class. Usually Drakan felt intimidated by persons of such royal stature, but there was something about the ruler of Erivale that made Drakan feel at ease.
“Today boy, we will start with the assault course as before and then we will see how your skills stand currently.” Drakan bowed his head with just the smallest hint of a smile. “Come along then!” Valros beamed back, Drakan thought that maybe the sovereign himself had felt like this once upon a time. I wonder if I can be like him one day…
Drakan completed the assault course just as he had before in an even faster time. “Not bad!” said Valros afterwards. Drakan felt proud to have the mighty Valros praise him. “What next sir?” he asked. “Well, lets see. You have your sword with you? Do you not?” Drakan nodded. “ Then lets see what skills you possess!”
Valros pulled a mighty Iron long sword from his hip and held it in the air. Drakan let out a shock filled gasp at its size. Compared to this his blade felt like a bread knife. “Of course, I shall not be fighting with this” Valros laughed. Drakan smiled uneasily for the first time in his presence. Throwing the huge sword down, Valros revealed a much smaller blade, of a similar style to Drakan’s but made of steel. “It may not be quite as shiny and valuable as yours, but it does the job.” Drakan nodded and picked his sword from the ground. He had barely turned around when Valros lunged at him with a vicious attack. Luckily Drakan knew how to block such attacks and did so, much to the Sovereigns apparent approval. “Well done. Where did you learn to block attacks like that?” he asked. Drakan knew that this question meant he had to talk about his past. Saying as little as possible he merely replied “From my father sir. He was in the army” “Valros nodded and did not press the matter further much to Drakan’s relief. Maybe he could sense Drakan’s discomfort? Either way, the conversation ended and the fighting continued. All of Valros’ attacks were successfully blocked but Drakan knew that these were very tame ones. If Valros really wanted to attack, Drakan wouldn’t have been able to block him.
As their fight went on, the attacks became fiercer and Drakan began to fail to block them. Eventually Valros put an end to the spar and ordered Drakan to rest for a few moments. The sovereign seemed pleased with Drakan’s work and smiled. “Now, Drakan, have you ever handled a bow before?” Drakan shook his head “No never.” Drakan had always thought that bow work looked impressive but had never bothered to try it. Valros tossed him a bow and took one for him, from a rack in the training grounds. Pulling an arrow out from a nearby sheath, he put it to his bow and hit a target some distance away dead centre. Drakan breathed in with awe. After a signal from his commander, Drakan put an arrow to his own bow. He gently pulled the string back and aimed at the target closest to him as ordered. He released the string. His arrow unlike the Sovereigns did not fly directly through the air to its target, but fell straight to the ground in front of him. Puzzled, Drakan made a face. This just made Valros laugh. “Never mind boy. We shall work more on your bow skills next time.”
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Post by The Sovereign on Jul 26, 2006 14:51:55 GMT
A very impressive second post Drakan! You were exactly on the word limit again!
You have now achieved the rank of Paige, and may begin the next level of training in due course.
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Post by Drakan Thrice on Aug 1, 2006 11:53:27 GMT
Post for advanced Swordsman training with the Sovereign
Drakan had arrived early for his third training session and stood by the gate gazing around at all the different types of people training. Normally he trained in the evenings, and not many people were in the field at that time. Today however he had decided to train in the late morning and the place was brimming with people of all different races. Elves practiced their magic while dwarves battled with swords and humans practiced their archery.
Drakan watched the elves with a slight envy. Back in his last home, all of his family and friends had been able to use magic from a very early age. When he was young his family just told him that he would gain the ability to use magic as he grew up. Eventually it became apparent that Drakan would never have th ability to perform any sort of magic and soon he was disowned by almost everyone in the village. He sighed as he remembered back to those days. HE could hardly believe how the elves had treated him there. So far no one really knew that Drakan had no magical ability, he wondered how they would react when they did find out.
Arkis nudged his arm, breaking Drakan from his thoughts. “What’s the matter with you?” he asked playfully. “You want to train too?” Knowing that he had a while before The Sovereign would turn up, Drakan decided that he would see how Arkis managed with some of the training apparatus in the grounds. Climbing up onto his back, Drakan pulled on the reigns and sent Arkis trotting across the field. On the far side were several jumps [similar to those used in show jumping] it was these that Drakan steered Arkis towards.
He cleared the first one but pulled to a sharp halt on the second, sending Drakan flying through the air and landing in the centre of someone’s sword duel. Apologising profusely he got up with as much dignity as he could muster and ran back to Arkis. Although the sword fight had been interrupted the two men found what had happened as funny as Arkis seemed to, who was whinnying loudly when Drakan got back. Looking round, he noticed that Valros had arrived and had seen the whole episode. Embarrassed, he climbed onto Arkis and trotted over to the gate. “Uh…you weren’t exactly supposed to see that…” Drakan mumbled. Valros just laughed and said “No, but its good to have some comic relief after a hard days work!” Drakan smiled, it seemed that the mighty Valros thought no less of him, despite his clumsy tendencies. “Today boy, we are going to try some more archery” Drakan’s smile faded. He had been awful the last time he tried this. “First however I want you to complete the assault course. Faster than the previous time. It does no harm to improve your stamina.” Drakan nodded. Going over to the fence he tied up Arkis and told him to behave himself. Starting the assault course, Drakan was determined to complete it as fast as he could. Valros boomed a loud “GO!” and Drakan began. The obstacles seemed much easier and a lot less effort seemed to be required to defeat them. The hardest part for Drakan was the tyres, which he had to step in as fast as he could. Every time he tried to do it, his feet would get tangled, he would twist and turn in all manner of directions and within no time he would be found laying on the floor. Each time this happened Valros would yell at him to try again, to no avail.
Drakan gave a yell of anguish as he failed for a fourth time. “This is pointless!” “Now now.” Valros replied calmly. “Patience is something you must master if you wish to be a fighter.” Drakan sighed. “I know sir…but…” he trailed off. Valros smiled “One more time. Slowly…” Getting up Drakan felt even more pressure to do this than before. This time Valros called out words of encouragement, and it was amazing the effects that it had. Soon the assault course was done with and Drakan almost passed out on the grass.
Once he had some water inside him and had almost completely recovered, Valros ordered him to his feet and put a bow in his hand. “Now, Put your arrow against the string… Pull back…release!” Unlike before Drakan’s arrow did not simply fall, limp, to the floor. Instead it travelled through the air and landed about two feet away. “BETTER!” Valros beamed at him. Drakan felt a huge weight being lifted from his heart. I can do it! he thought to himself, immensely proud. I cant wait to tell Scarlet!
After a lot more practice, Drakan’s arrows were getting further and further away from his feet, and by the time The Sovereign called him to a stop, his arrow was at least twenty five feet away. Although Valros could send his arrows what seemed like miles. Drakan was very proud of himself. He had never picked up a bow before his last training session, and already he was gaining skill.
Next it was swords. Drakan pulled out his silver sword and expected Valros to use his small blade too, however Valros said “Put down your knife boy. Today we will be using long swords.” Although Drakan was slightly offended by the word ‘knife’ being used to refer to his father’s sword, he held his anger inside. “I think that you are skilled enough to handle this” he said passing Drakan the huge sword. Drakan felt immeasurably proud at such words especially from such a great man. Drakan had heard stories about The Sovereign since he was tiny. His father used to come home and tell his sons of how he had seen the mighty Valros. To be training with him now made Drakan feel closer to his father, although he was not sure why. Looking down at the sword, Drakan could see that once, this had been Valros’ weapon of choice. Markings on the hilt, depicted a great battle scene and on the very tip of the blade, although slightly faded, were the coat of arms from the Sovereigns family.
Drakan waited until Valros had his sword to hand, and attacked. Unlike last time, he felt nothing wrong with attacking such a person. Swords flying and the yells of Drakan and Valros, attracted several people from the training grounds. Soon there was quite an audience. Without taking his eyes off of Valros, Drakan wondered if Scarlet was there. He doubted it. Blocking a huge attack from Valros earnt Drakan a small round of applause. After a while, the spectators began to saunter back to their own business and as they did, Drakan began to tire. Finally he dropped his sword and held his hands up “I…give…up…” he said breathily. Valros told him to practice and meet him again next week to complete his training. Drakan looked at him in disbelief. “Last session?” he said, Not making much sense. “Yes” Valros replied. “I believe you to have enough skilled to complete your swordsman training. Your archery skills however…” Drakan smiled. Wow he thought I’ve done it….
Valros gathered up his equipment and said goodbye to Drakan, who was still sitting there in disbelief. Arkis broke him from his thoughts by loudly neighing in his ear. “ARGH!” cried Drakan, rolling over at the loud noise. He looked up to see Arkis looking reasonably pleased with himself. He laughed. “Come on then, you want some more training?”
Drakan clambered up again and went back to the jumps he had tried before Valros had come. He hoped Arkis would behave himself this time. The first jump was cleared nicely again, and the second too. Arkis had a little trouble on the third but cleared the fourth perfectly. Drakan patted him gently, and made a promise to give him a treat when they got back to the stables.
Once Drakan was sure Arkis was able to complete these jumps, he moved onto the slightly higher ones. He was shocked when Arkis completed the first one, as he had not expected him to be anywhere near ready. The second however proved too much for Arkis, who instead turned round and took Drakan to the edge of the Dragons training area. Leaning on the fence Drakan watched in awe at the impressive creatures flying and breathing fire. He couldn’t believe that this was what Scarlet wanted to do. He was sure that he would never have the courage to do something like that.
Pulling Arkis into a slow walk he headed back to the gate where he had entered. Looking back at the grounds as he left he couldn’t believe how happy he felt here. Not only in the training grounds but in Erivale in general. Everyone was so much friendlier and everyone had time for one another. He didn’t miss his village, at all.
[OOC: this took me literally hours!]
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Post by The Sovereign on Aug 1, 2006 20:04:38 GMT
Well Drakan, this is four words short of the count, if you don't count the title... (joke) Accepted! A very good post for Advanced. Please wait at least 5 days before posting for Elite.
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Post by Trysten Aradar on Aug 2, 2006 22:47:14 GMT
Post for Trainee in the Spies Division with The Sovereign
Trysten wandered into the Training Grounds. He hoped that The Sovereign wouldn’t mind him being slightly late. He saw a figure in the distance and wandered over. The sun was beginning to set. Perfect amount of light for sneaking up on someone, Trysten thought to himself.
“Excuse me, sir,” he said, as he approached Valros. “I’m here to train with you?” Valros looked at him. They were about the same height, but none the less, Trysten couldn’t help feeling slightly nervous about the man in front of him.
“Ah yes,” Valros smiled slightly at him. “You must be Trysten. I’ve got a simple exercise for you to do today, to assess what skills you have for being a spy.” They walked over to what looked like an assault course. It was a mass of tall wooden walls and boxes.
“I would like you to go to the other end of this course,” Valros explained. “When I say so, you need to make your way down to me, but without being spotted. You will start with 10 points, and every time I spot you I will deduct a point.”
Trysten walked to the end of the course, and when The Sovereign said so, he began, quickly darting behind a tall wooden box. He worked out that if he climbed on top of the box at the furthest side, he would be shielded by the wall in front and wouldn’t be spotted. He managed to make his way across the course in a relatively quick time, blending into the shadows as well as he could. When he reached the end Valros looked pleased.
“Well done, Trysten. I only managed to spot you twice, I’m impressed,” he said, patting him on the back.
Trysten smiled, looking forward to his next chance to train again.
[[OOC: around 300 words I think... I went a bit over...]]
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Post by Nelra on Aug 3, 2006 1:51:03 GMT
Post for Trainee in Calvary training with Earl Christoph
Nelra walked into the training grounds leading here mare, a jet black, sturdy built horse named Eclipse. She was her to begin her training as part of the Calvary division, and she was a little nervous. She had been told that she would be training with the Earl Christoph von Trapp. She spotted someone over by a group of people on horses, and could only assume that it was the Earl. She hurried over.
“Hello, Sir. I’m here to start my training for the Calvary.” She said once she got close, and was sure the Earl had noticed her.
“Good, well let’s start with seeing how well you handle your horse.” He said, pointing towards an obstacle course of sorts. Nelra nodded and let Eclipse over to the starting point. She swung up easily onto the mare’s back and nudged her gently forward.
“Okay, girl,” she whispered softly, “just like we used to do at home, only this time the obstacles aren’t just a bunch of logs and trees.” She set off through the course at a slow trot, easily weaving in and out of poles, and flying over the jumps as if they were hardly there. She hardly seemed to be giving her horse directions, and the two moved through the course as if they’d done it a thousand times. As she exited the course she gently pulled her horse to a stop, and slid down off her back.
“Well,” said the Earl, “it seems like you’ve had some practice at this.” Nelra simply smiled at this, happy to know that she’d done a good job and eager to hear if she’d made it to Trainee level. She looked forward to her next training session, for after that she’d finally be able to join the Dragonriders.
((OOC: It's 297 words, not counting the title))
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Post by Scarlet Aldsilver on Aug 3, 2006 11:05:51 GMT
Training for Trainee in Cavalry Division, with Earl Christoph von Trapp
Scarlet gripped Ember’s reins tightly as she approached the Earl, who was waiting patiently over the opposite side of the training grounds with his own horse. Scarlet introduced herself politely.
“Scarlet, if you could do a lap of the track. I wish to see what your form is like.” Earl Christoph said.
Scarlet pulled on Ember’s reins, turning her around. She started with a trot, then canter, then urged her into a gallop, as they reached the Earl, Scarlet slowed her down to a walk.
“Good.” The Earl replied, “You’re obviously not a newcomer to horse-riding, although now we will practise fighting from horseback. All the riding skills in the world aren’t going to help you unless you can fight properly. We’ll start with some archery.”
Scarlet retrieved her bow and quiver, and then remounted Ember. She followed the earl to the shooting targets in the middle of the grounds. The Earl released an arrow first, needless to say it hit the bulls eye. Now it was Scarlets turn, she pulled the arrow back and released, the arrow sailed over the target board and landed in the grass the other side. The Earl gave her some advice on how to hold the bow differently, and reminded her that she was much higher up on horseback, than she would be if shooting from the ground. Scarlet practised this for a while, until every arrow she released hit the board, not always the centre though. The Earl stopped her.
“That will be enough archery for today, only practise now can increase your aim. Next time, we will try shooting whilst you horse is moving. That will be a challenge. Now, if you can retrieve your sword and meet me over there.” he pointed to an area of the training grounds filled with straw dummies.
Scarlet arrived with her sword in a matter of minutes. The earl demonstrated what he wanted her to do; he rode across the grass, weaving through the straw dummies and at the same time brandishing his sword. Not one of the dummies escaped with all their straw stuffing. When it came to Scarlet’s turn, she realised she was shaking. She began cantering, sword in hand. The first dummy approached on her right hand side, she swung low, removing its straw filled head. The next two dummies met similar ends. The earl called out to her, telling her to use a different technique. This time, instead if slashing at it’s head, she plunged her sword into its stomach, Ember rode on and before Scarlet had a chance to remove her sword, it was wrenched from her grasp. She tumbled out of the saddle and fell with a light thud on the ground.
Still feeling dazed, the Earl pulled her to her feet. "How many fingers?" He asked “Uh, twelve?” Scarlet replied, her head spinning. “Close enough.” The earl replied with a smile, and whistled to Ember, who obediently stopped eating the straw from the decapitated dummies and trotted over. “Let’s try that again shall we…” he said, pulling out her sword from the dummy and handing it back.
She began to attack the dummies again, her hair, which had been tied back in a plait, had fallen out and tumbled down her shoulders. She looked around impatiently for the ribbon which had once kept it so neatly in place, but soon gave up- the wind had picked up and it could be miles away by now. After a short while she began to tire and as she aimed a blow at the dummy approaching her, her sword felt like a lead weight in her arms. When she struck, the sword went flying (rather dangerously) from her grip.
“Enough.” The earl said, “That will do for today.” Scarlet thanked him, then slid down from Ember’s saddle. Her legs and backside hurt from spending so much time in the saddle, and her whole arms burned from holding the sword for so long. She turned her back on the grounds, hair whipping around her face.
Word Count: 673 (erm, I think i got a bit carried away...!)
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Post by The Sovereign on Aug 3, 2006 11:34:32 GMT
Trysten, this is a good first post. You may now add, 'Trainee' to your signature if you wish.
(Scarlet and Nelra, It is the Earl who will accept/deny your posts)
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Post by Earl Christoph von Trapp on Aug 3, 2006 18:26:18 GMT
Scarlet and Nelra, both your posts have been accepted. You may now add 'Trainee' to your signatures.
You may post for the next level of Page in due course.
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Post by Nelra on Aug 3, 2006 21:19:48 GMT
Post for Page in Calvary training with Earl Christoph
Nelra approached the training grounds riding Eclipse at a trot. She was excited for the days training and couldn’t wait to get started. She spotted the Earl over by the archery targets, already on horseback.
“Ah, good, you’re here,” the Earl said as she arrived. “We’re going to start with some archery today. We’ll start off with just staying in one spot, then once you’ve got the hang of that we’ll move onto shooting while you’re moving. Are you ready to start?”
Nelra nodded and grabbed her bow and quiver from where they were strapped at the back of her saddle. She moved her horse into position using her legs while she strung her bow. Once that was done she set an arrow on the string, raised her bow, and let the arrow fly. The arrow soared over the target by a foot.
“Aim lower than you normally would. A horse’s back is higher up than what you’re likely used to.” The Earl advised. Nelra tried it and this time her arrow hit the target a few inches above the bulls eye. She tried lowering her aim a bit more; this time the arrow sailed under the target. So... she thought, I’ve got to find the happy median. That shouldn’t be too hard. She practiced this for a bit, her arrows get closer to the bulls eye each time, until she hit it five times in a row.
“Good,” the Earl said, “Now have your horse run back and forth in front of the target. Let’s see how well you do when you’re on the move.” Nelra gave a brief nod and set off at a slow trot. She turned her upper body sideways so she was facing the targets. She chose her target, aimed, and let her arrow go. It missed her chosen target and hit the edge of the one next to it. C’mon, you can do better than that. It’s just a matter of keeping your arrow locked on your target. She said to herself.
She switched her bow to the other side as she turned her horse around at the end of the line. This time she chose a target a little ways ahead of her. When she drew level with the target she released her arrow. It hit the target, though not on the bulls eye. She turned around again and repeated the process, hitting the target once again. She did this over several times, sometimes missing the target, but hitting it the majority of the time, though never on the bulls eye. After she’d shot around forty arrows the Earl called a halt.
“Good, I would suggest practicing shooting while moving as much as you can. It’s a useful skill, even if you can’t always get the bulls eye. Now we’re going to see how you do with sword fighting from horseback.” The Earl pointed towards a course with straw filled dummies. They rode towards it. “Now, watch carefully. This is what I want you to do.”
The Earl set off through the course, slashing and stabbing at the dummies. Once he finished he rode back to where Nelra was standing. “Now it’s your turn.” Nelra entered the course, her face set and her sword gripped tightly. She was determined to do this, and do it right. She swung her sword at the first dummy, chopping its head of in one smooth motion. She did the same to the next one. The third one she tried stabbing in the middle. Her sword stuck in it, and she didn’t have a chance to pull it out before her horse thundered past. She was yanked off her horse, as she still had a firm hold on the sword, and fell hard on her bottom. She pulled the sword free and whistled Eclipse back. She jumped back on her horse’s back and set off again, this time making sure not to plunge her sword so far into the dummies.
She emerged from the course at a full out trot, expecting to see more dummies waiting. When she saw no more of the straw dummies she reigned her horse in hard and turned around. She walked her horse back to the Earl and slid off to lie on the ground beside her horse. Eclipse looked at Nelra and snorted before lowering her head to munch at some of the straw fallen from one of the dummies.
“Well, I can see that you’re tired out, so I guess we’ll call it a day. You did a good job, now go and get some rest.”
“Thank you,” Nelra said and heaved herself to her feet. She picked up Eclipse’s reigns and walked slowly off the training grounds.
Word count: 796 counting the title
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Post by Earl Christoph von Trapp on Aug 4, 2006 18:20:38 GMT
Nelra, this is a good post, but it seems extremely similar to Scarlet's. You need to be able to come up with your own training ideas, and not copy ones that have been made by previous users. It is understandable that some ideas may be the same, but as in Scarlet's post you have started out with archery and moved onto sword combat. You also seem to have a great deal of similarities, such as the fact that you fell off the horse under the same circumstances. For now this post has not been accepted, as we do not believe it would be fair on other characters if we did so.
In order to achieve the rank of page, please write an additional 250 words, about another training session. You do not need to change your original post.
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Post by Trysten Aradar on Aug 4, 2006 19:01:24 GMT
Post for Page in the Spies Division with The Sovereign
Trysten wasn’t as apprehensive walking into the training grounds as he had been the first time. He spotted The Sovereign waiting for him in the distance, and sprinted over to him. Like his first session, he had planned his training time in the early evening. He was always more energetic around that time than during the day. He approached Valros and bowed his head slightly.
“Good evening, sir,” he said. He was more at ease around Valros this time.
The Sovereign greeted him and then began to explain the activities he had planned for Trysten.
“The first thing we are going to do is some target practice. As a spy you may need to use archery skills to hit a target without being seen, and often from difficult positions,” Valros explained, as they walked over to the archery range.
There was a tall wooden structure some distance from the line of targets, and Trysten guessed that he would be using it. From the front it looked like a wooden wall with holes in it, but from behind there were platforms at different levels.
“What you need to do,” began The Sovereign, “is to climb to each platform and take a shot at the targets through each gap. But first you can take a few shots from the normal range, so that you can practice.”
He handed Trysten a crossbow and a quiver of arrows, which he slung over his shoulder. He lined himself up in front of the first target and took aim. The arrow landed just short of the target. Trysten muttered a curse under his breath. He was out of practice and it was showing. He tried again, this time making sure he took his time before making the shot. The arrow struck the board near the edge of the target. He felt himself remembering how he should be shooting, and took one final shot, making sure that his breathing was controlled and calm. The arrow hit the bulls-eye.
Valros was watching him with interest, he saw potential in Trysten, but knew that the boy would not be satisfied unless he was doing everything as well as he could. He stopped him, and they walked over to the wooden structure.
“Remember, accuracy is key, don’t rush it. If you have to use more than one arrow to get the shot then it’s no good. You may begin when you are ready,” Valros instructed.
Trysten ran to the structure and crouched under the first platform where the first gap was. He wasn’t used to shooting from such a low angle, but he lined himself up as best he could, trying to gauge the distance. When he was absolutely sure he had a clear shot, he fired. The arrow just missed the centre of the target. Trysten remembered what The Sovereign had told him, and didn’t dwell on the off shot. He climbed onto the platform above, and lay on his stomach so that he had a good view of the target. The angle was easier on this level, but shooting whilst lying down was a different matter. He brought the stock into his shoulder and took aim. This time the arrow shot straight into the centre of the target. Trysten smiled to himself and moved on.
As he climbed to the next level he tried as hard as he could to make as little noise as possible, and not allow himself to be spotted by Valros who was standing on the other side.
He carried on until he had reached the top of the structure. There was little wood above him to cover his position, so he was forced to lie as flat on the platform as possible. The angle that he was at made it very difficult to get a clear shot at the target. Trysten knew that it would be impossible to get into a better position without allowing himself to be seen by the keen eyes of The Sovereign, who stood on the ground below. He propped himself up on his elbows, and rested the crossbow against the ledge. It was going to be an awkward shot, but Trysten knew that if he concentrated he could make it. He twisted the crossbow so that it was pointing in the right direction. There was no way he could directly aim in the position that he was in. He needed a new plan. Thinking quickly, he left the crossbow balanced in its position and swung his legs off the platform. He knew that he would have to be quick with the shot if it was going to work. Holding onto the platform, he swung himself to where the crossbow was balanced. His feet just made contact with the wood below, so he held on with one arm, and balanced himself. He lined up the crossbow. He now had a much clearer view of the target. Keeping as steady as he could, he fired. The arrow shot straight through the centre of the target. Trysten smiled. He picked up the crossbow and pushed back from the platform, landing crouched on the floor.
Valros walked over to him. “Impressive,” he said, smiling slightly. “You could use some more training, but you did well.” Trysten nodded, satisfied with his efforts, and already anticipating his next session.
[[885 words]]
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